I started by simply coding the led strip, to turn on and off. I then started looking into changing the colour of it, both these things were very basic. However ,the wiring of the board was a little more complicated but after a few times of doing it, it soon became pretty easy and the more and more times I done it I became much more familiar with the board and what each pin means. I then looked at coding the ultrasonic sensor which was also difficult as I had never used this before, so I got some assistance wiring this up and also looking at the code and what each part means. Once it was all set up I started looking at the data it was giving out, It was pretty accurate and was giving out the data in centimetres. I then combined the codes, this took some time to get working again as I ended up getting quite confused with how it all worked when combined. At first I set it so that the two components worked individual, just to make sure they both worked on the code, I then started altering it so that the led would turn on at a certain distance. At first I had it set so that unless the object was closer than the set distance, the LED would just stay green. However this did not look very professional and I wanted the LED to be turned off unless in use. So I changed the code around and got it so that it would be off, until something was in front of it, then it would turn green and start flashing to show it was in use at a safe distance. Then when you got close to the second variable it would turn red and start blinking faster. I was happy with this but I wanted to make it a bit more precise. I decided to do this by adding in another variable, which was amber. This would go on between the green and the red to show that the user is close, but not too close. Making the design much more effective to use. However, this meant redoing some of the code as it did not fit with what I had previous done before. I also had to change my distances and make them bigger to allow enough distance between the three colours.
My reason for
designing the LED park parking assistant is based on, not everyone can afford a
car that comes equipped with parking sensors nowadays, and other people might
just not like them, may find them annoying or hard to use. My Project looks at
providing car parking aids for car parks, turning parking sensor into
installations, rather than luxury add-ons for vehicles. Making them available
for use to everyone. Installing these parking aids will allow all people to
park safely and confidently. Reducing bumps and crashes. These parking aids
could be set up in any kind of carpark or multi-storey. The stand would be cemented
into the back of the spaces just like a sign would, allowing them to be seen
from the front windscreen and rear view mirror while parking.
The parking aids will be presented as tall stands that feature discreet
proximity sensors at 3 different levels of the stand this will allow readings
for any height of vehicle. The stand will be housing an LED strip at the top,
that moves up and down based of readings from the sensors, so visible at
various heights, accommodating different cars. The LED will first switch on
when the user first drives into the space, to save power being wasted. As the
user starts getting closer to the sensor, it will change to Green to alert the
user the are in proximity to the sensor. The when the user then gets closer,
the light will then change to amber and then finally to Red when the user is
dangerously close, and warning them that they should stop and they are safely
in the bay. The warning will be visible whether the user is driving in or
reversing in to the space, and will also move up or down if it detects the
vehicle is taller or smaller.
